Archives for November 2012

‘”Here’s what I miss with the ‘lockout’, Mike tells. “I’m very comfortable driving at night, the radio turned on and I’d pick up a game from Chicago or Montreal”. For Mike, 64, radio and hockey has always been an important partnership. This comes from being part of an 11 sibling family. Robitaille’s voice climbs an octave in excitement when thinking back to when being a child and laying in bed at night uder the covers, with his transistor radio on the third floor of their home, and picking up broadcasts of Fort Wayne ( Indiana ) Komets games . “These guys, in my mind were bigger than life. Many of them never made it to the NHL but they were heroes of mine”, says Robitaille, a veteran of 382 NHL games with the Rangers, Sabres, Red Wings, and Canucks.’

‘“If it does get settled quick, then I’ll be able to skate for a few weeks, a month – whatever it is,” Pominville said after skating inside the Northtown Center. “It’ll be a mini training camp. And if not, I’ll have a team for the rest of the season. I think it’s a move I wanted to do. I just want to play.”’

‘No negotiations are scheduled, though the NHL has proposed a new meeting dynamic. Commissioner Gary Bettman suggested to NHLPA Executive Director Donald Fehr that owners and players talk directly without league or union representatives present. “Nothing else has worked,” Daly told reporters. “The commissioner felt that we might as well propose something different.”’

‘The cream of the crop of Buffalo’s pipeline, Grigorenko is continuing where he left off last year after being named the league’s top professional prospect. He has been an absolute force for the third-place Remparts, currently sitting second in the QMJHL in scoring.’

‘“The Buffalo Sabres are a vital part of the economic life of downtown Buffalo, and the lockout has been absolutely devastating for local businesses,” Gillibrand said. “Local small-business owners rely tremendously on the revenues generated from Sabres’ fans to keep their establishments operating, and it is imperative for them to have knowledge of the resources available to assist them through this difficult time.”’

‘“The Buffalo Sabres are a vital part of the economic life of downtown Buffalo and the lockout has been absolutely devastating for local businesses,” Gillibrand said. “Local small business owners rely tremendously on the revenues generated from Sabres’ fans to keep their establishments operating. It is imperative for them to have knowledge of the resources available to assist them through this difficult time.”’